Bethany Henry: Writing & Wellness

So. Asking for help is hard. Asking for  anything  is hard. I’m not particularly good at it, and you know what? I’m not alone. This fear of asking overflows into our work as writers. The writing process involves creating stories and asking people to read them, to review them, to love them. When we are afraid to put ourselves out there and ask people for what we need and want, it can seriously hinder our work. For myself, I think asking for help is hard because I’m afraid people will think I don’t “have it all together” (whatever that means). I’m afraid people will be inconvenienced and unhappy with me. My fear of failure shows up and tells me no one wants to read my work anyway. Enter The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer. The Art of Asking is part memoir and part advice-giving, along with plenty of song lyrics. (For anyone thinking of giving it to your children, you may want to take a read yourself first. It does include swears and some sensitive su...

Sometimes I catch myself being super negative, especially when I’m hungry or haven’t gotten enough sleep. It’s a dangerous, slippery slope because once I start being critical, suddenly I see fault in everything. Which is why it’s so powerful to practice thanksgiving. For a bit now I’ve been trying to regularly stop and take time to list something I’m grateful for. Spoiler alert: It’s not always something big or fancy. Hot beverages show up a lot on my lists haha. It can be anything that brings me joy or that I recognize as helpful. And you know what? Even just writing down one thing a day has been changing my mindset because I start to look around me for things to be thankful for. I’m essentially working to train my brain to be more positive. Which I love! I want to be a person who is thankful, gracious, and full of joy even on hard days. So this is a part of my journey to be that person. If you want to try it out with me, just try jotting down something you’re thankful for each day. N...

Today we’re moving beyond basic website setup to look at a few things that can really make your site work well for you. These details and functions will enable your site to do more to connect you with your ideal audience and to save you time in the long run. This is part 3 of the Website Building series. If you haven’t already, check out my earlier posts on identifying your website’s purpose and a step by step guide for putting together a basic website. Topics we’re looking at today are: Email Sign Up Privacy Policy SSL & Security SEO Social Media Pictures Branding Header and Logo Any of these items could be a blog post (or series) completely on its own so keep in mind this is just a quick overview. I’ve tried to include helpful links with more guidance. Email Sign Up With an email list you can share new information and products with your audience, as well as develop a more personal connection. Lots of people say this is one of the most important pieces to includ...

Books are a wonderful magic. Here are some beautiful quotes for book lovers to celebrate books, reading, and writing.  1. “Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman 2. “There is no friend as loyal as a book.” –Ernest Hemingway 3. “There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of books is the best of all.” –Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis 4. “I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a book.” – J.K. Rowling 5. “I love books. I adore everything about them. I love the feel of the pages on my fingertips. They are light enough to carry, yet so heavy with worlds and ideas. I love the sound of the pages flicking against my fingers. Print against fingerprints. Books make people quiet, yet they are so loud.” – Nnedi Okorafor 6. “So many books, so little time.”–Frank Zappa 7. “You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.” – C.S...

I have a confession to make. Sometimes I try to do too many things at once. Confession number two- I do this a  lot  actually. I’m often pretty good at doing a lot of things at once… Which actually becomes a problem because then I think I can continue scheduling 10 appointments into an 8 hour work day or plan to cook dinner, clean the house, respond to emails, and keep my kids happy all at the same time and expect it to work. (Spoiler alert- it doesn’t.) Even if the tasks all get done, I end up burnt out and cranky. And more often than not, something gets forgotten or messed up. When we juggle too many things into our days we may be able to keep them going for a short while but it doesn’t leave any room for things to go wrong. Because this is life, people. We wake up sick. The car gets a flat tire. I live in New England and it’s practically a guarantee we’ll get a snowstorm whenever we have someplace important to be. When our deadlines and schedules are maxed out we don’t have...